The public-private mix in India's Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme--an update.

The Revised National TB Control Programme (RNTCP) in India has made definite progress over the last 2 years and given a boost to global DOTS expansion. The Private Practitioners (PPs) involved in Public-Private Mix (PPM) in India's RNTCP are the first point of contact for more than 2/3rds of TB symptomatics. The vital components of PPM approach are supervision and monitoring of diagnosis of referred cases from PPs, functioning of private laboratories, registration of confirmed cases, treatment with DOT and documentation. The most important contribution of some of the PPM projects has been the creation of a link in the form of a referral system between the private and public sectors. PPM can contribute positively to the performance of RNTCP. RNTCP should be seen as the first step towards an exciting direction in engaging private sector in public health programmes.